Utility meters have for many years been used a flow metering element, such as a turbine, paddle wheel or nutating disc, or other element which is disposed in a housing connected in a pipeline. The housing has often been a bronze casting, and in more recent years, other materials, including other alloys and including plastic, have been proposed and used for the housing. The meter housing typically has threaded inlet and outlet spouts which are fastened by nuts to ends of pipe in a supply pipeline.
The utility meter assembly has been completed by a meter register, which has had a mechanical gear arrangement driving an odometer-style set of number wheels disposed under a glass or crystal for visual observation of accumulated flow totals by a meter reading technician.
In recent years, remote read-out devices have been provided to relay the accumulated totals to the outside of a residence or building for easier access by a meter reading technician. Radio systems have also been introduced in which the quantities of consumption are signaled by RF signals from the meter to a data collection vehicle or to a fixed RF receiving station.
In view of these developments it is desired to provide a totally new approach to manufacture of a meter and meter register that will lower manufacturing costs while providing improved efficiency and functionality to providing and collecting meter data.
Hicks, U.S. Pat. No. 4,553,433, discloses a gas meter which is said to have an integral instrument housing. In fact, only the bottom portion of the register housing is integral and there is a large windowed cover (FIGS. 1 and 2) that snaps shut over the bottom portion to complete the register housing.
Feldman, U.S. Pat. No. 3,653,261, illustrates a utility meter which is provides some integration in assembly of its mechanical parts. There is a separate housing for the register. There is a port for reading out data to a remote display, and there is also a visual readout provided by dials in the register.
Painley et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,731,534, shows a security plastic housing of having a body and dome parts 14, that are assembled around a meter and a register. The housing has a window to permit viewing of the register.
Sauriol, Reissued U.S. Pat. No. 28,640, provides a housing which is, in fact, a pit enclosure in which a meter/register assembly would be placed.
None of these references provide or suggest the solution which is the subject of the present invention.